Snow
by Luna Goddess of the Night
Summary: An early birthday present for Flowerstar and just in time for the holidays. A festive time turns sour due to Ember. And Elora heads out into the bitter cold, to be once again saved by our familiar purple friend. As always, reviews are appreciated, and enjoy. One shot.


_A/N: This is a very early birthday present for Flowerstar. Flower, may you have a very happy birthday today, and enjoy best of it. Happy birthday! And no worries, this is based off the old school Spyro, with a little Ember bashing thrown in. And since the holidays are coming up, I figured to roll the two into one. I do not own Spyro, Spyro belongs to its respected owners. Enjoy._

_Snow_

_Snow…_

_Snow…it's so cold…_

Her eyes opened slightly, green emeralds shining through the night. She closed them again and snuggled deeper into the snow. Regardless of how cold it was. _How did I even get to this point to begin with?_

That was a lie. Of course she knew how she got here. Her mind thought back to just hours before. To where everyone was enjoying cups of piping hot chocolate, and stuffing themselves on s'mores and other assorted holiday cookies.

A cheetah's paw was moving toward the plat of cookies, licking his chops eagerly. "Yummy! Ow!"

A rabbit looked over, crossing her arms. "If you keep eating the cookies, Hunter, then we'll be eating you instead of the turkey."

"B-b-but Bianca," he whimpered out. A look from his little bunny silenced him.

Elora laughed and sat back against the rather large couch they were all crowded on. _It's funny. I wish I had that sort of thing._ She sighed, resting her chin on her open palm.

"Ember, knock it off!"

Elora looked over to the end of the couch to see Ember with Flame, holding a piece of mistletoe with her tail, and waiting for a kiss. "But Flame, this is the perfect excuse!"

"I said not in front of everyone!"

"But Flamey…"

Elora chuckled softly and reached for a cookie, quietly nibbling on it. Watching everyone get together like this, it was nice. No Ripto, no Red, not even Gnasty Gnorc darkened their doorstep. It wasn't everyday that something like this happened. Just to hear their cheerful laughter, their teasing and having fun. _I wish every day could be like this._ Only, one little dragon was missing.

_Spyro…_

She understood, she understood very well. He was a busy little dragon. Last she knew, he was out trying to take care of a small Gnorc problem that had sprouted up. She didn't know the full story, but she knew that Spyro had immediately left to go and handle it. So, in the meantime, she was left to enjoy the festivities.

"Alright, alright, everyone. It's time for the gift giving!" A tiny little mole pronounced, trying to get everyone's attention. When they continued to talk above him, the Professor began to grow annoyed. He tried again to get their attention, and yet again still. When that didn't work, he reached into his pocket and grabbed a tiny little cube. Placing it onto the table, he waited. Suddenly, a flash of brilliant white light filled the room, before dying down altogether. Everyone looked over at him, awaiting further from the tiny little mole.

He cleared his throat. "Now, I'll say it again. It's now time for the gift giving." He hopped off of the couch and walked to the tree. "We'll open one gift each tonight, and then open the rest tomorrow, on Christmas morning." He reached for a wrapped box. "Hunter, this is for you, from Bianca."

"Oh goody!" Hunter reached over and grabbed it, quickly opening it up. "A new pair of running shoes!" He placed a chaste kiss on Bianca's cheek. "My little bunny is the best!"

In between Bianca's chuckles, the Professor reached for another gift. "Moneybags, this is yours from me."

The portly bear reached for it and opened it up. "W-what is this?" He cocked a head at the tiny mole.

"It's a gem holder," the professor explained. "Whenever you get any gems, you stick it inside. Like a safe of sorts."

The bear squealed happily, which was unlike him. "Finally, a safe for my gems!"

The gifts continued. A new robe for Bianca, to keep her warm and cozy at night. A new necklace for Ember, with a beautiful aqua stone in the middle. Flame received a cozy blanket, so he could curl up with Ember at night. And the Professor got a journal to record every experiment or idea that crossed his mind. Happy, happy, happy. Happy smiles and laughter. That's all that went on right now. And that's all Elora blocked out.

"Hey, where's Spyro?" Flame looked around for the notorious purple dragon.

Hunter looked thoughtful. "He said he was taking care of a Gnorc problem. Told us to just relax and he'd be back soon."

Moneybags chortled. "But we haven't had an issue with Gnorcs at all lately. Not since the Professor's new invention. That shield thingy."

"The shield generator, and no, we haven't." The professor sat back on the couch, thinking to himself. "But that is quite odd. What reason would Spyro have to go out, on a cold night?"

"Maybe he was trying to avoid this," Ember thought aloud.

"Ember!" Flame looked appalled.

She gave a noncommittal flick of her tail. "What? Not like he really has time for anyone to begin with. When he's not resting, he's out there, trying to keep us all safe. Unlike anyone else here. And does anyone even give him a shred of decency or even a thank you?" She gave a glowering look to everyone else.

"Enough with the hero worship," Bianca warned, holding her wand high up. "Or did you happen to forget the last time you shot off your mouth?"

Ember looked a bit frightened, but quieted down. She continued to shoot looks over at Bianca, though, who munched on a cookie, not noticing a thing.

Elora stood up from the couch, her cup of cocoa left abandoned. "Excuse me."

"Uh hey, where ya going?" Hunter crowed out. "It's too cold to be going outside!" But she ignored him and ran out of the room, into the bitter cold.

She continued to run, her hooves crashing into the snow, causing it to rise into the air. Hot tears began to run down her cheeks, her heart feeling like it was breaking into two. _How can she even say that? How can she say I'm not appreciative?_ She sniffled, the tears beginning to sting her cheeks from the bitter wind.

_I _am_ appreciative! I am supportive! Whenever we were in trouble, or needed his help, I _was_ there for him!_ She felt her hoof slide deep into the snow, which caused her body to slam down into the white, icy powder. Continuing to sob silently, she curled up onto her side, and closed her eyes.

_When he went to fight Ripto's goons, who was there to help provide him with sheep? Me. When everything else seemed to go wrong, and he needed help, who was there? Me!_ She shivered from the cold. And here is where she laid now, lamenting on all that just happened.

_Look at me. I'm no less than Ember. Throwing a tantrum while out in the snow. Hating myself because in reality, they could be right._ She let out a small whimper. _Maybe they are right. No one even says thank you, or gives the poor dragon a break. Spyro, I'm…_She felt her mind drift off, everything going black.

_Hn…crackling? Something's on fire? Something's on fire!_

She awoke rapidly, breathing hard, her eyes wide. In front of her was a pile of sticks set aflame, the fire dancing merrily in front of her. She reached up, feeling something soft on her shoulders. _A blanket? But who could have?_ She closed her eyes. _Someone must have found me, and chose to keep me warm._ She snuggled deeper into the blanket, realizing that someone had also taken the courtesy of melting all the snow below her, so she could have a warm place to sit.

"Elora?"

Her eyes snapped open. _No…_

Tentative footsteps came closer to her, as if unsure to even be near her. "Thank goodness you're alright." The figure continued to plod up to her, revealing purple scales and tiny wings, golden in the light. "I knew it. It was you in the snow."

She pulled the blanket up to cover her some more. "So what if it was?"

He let out an irritated growl. "Why were you even out here in the first place? You could have gotten sick, or worse."

She opened her eyes. "I don't care anymore."

He felt his jaw go slack. "You don't care?" He plodded over and moved to get under the blanket, his scales running over her skin. "Elora, you want to explain what's going on?"

_Why…why does he make me feel this way?_ With a tiny sob, Elora recounted the tale from earlier, including some of the hurtful things Ember had said. Spyro shook his head, sighing.

"You shouldn't believe a word Ember says, you know? She's just full of herself half the time. Either full of herself or full of hot air." Spyro nuzzled Elora. "Just because I'm busy, or even away for hours or days at a time, doesn't mean I won't come back. Nor does it mean that no one is appreciative. In fact," Spyro looked up at the sky, "Sparx! Come on, little buddy! Bring out that surprise for Elora!"

A tiny golden orb flew down, before it came closer, a tiny dragonfly carrying a box tied with a ribbon in its mouth. He dropped the small box in front of Elora, then moved to sit under the blanket with the two of them, buzzing in delight.

"The last group I saved wanted to do something for me. Instead of it being for me, however, I had them create something special for you." He pushed the box toward her. "Go on. Open it."

Her hands shaking, hardly able to believe it, Elora took off the ribbons and opened the small box. Inside was a beautiful silver circlet, complete with an emerald as the center gem, and tiny little angel wings sitting straight up on the side. "Oh, Spyro," she breathed.

"They asked me if I had any preferences." He flicked his tail. "I told them of you. How the silver brings out the color of your eyes. And they decided silver and emerald was to be the piece for you." He reached forward and picked up the circlet with his teeth, gently placing it on her head. "It looks wonderful on you."

Tears welled up in her eyes once more. "Thank you, I love it!" She wrapped her arms around his neck, her smile bigger than even Moneybags on a good day.

He chuckled softly. "I had a feeling you would love it." He nuzzled her face.

Her voice dropped to a whisper as she continued to smile. "Thank you…"

_A/N: There you have it. A soft moment of fluff. Short yet sweet. I figured this would be perfect for the holiday season as well. Hope you all enjoyed it!_


End file.
